Michael Symon is ready to take on Pittsburgh

When you get hungry on a coming trip to Pittsburgh, you'll be able to satisfy the craving with a taste of home.The Pittsburgh Business Timesreports that Michael Symon “is ready to bring his B Spot burger restaurant to Pittsburgh” in a big way.Cleveland-based Symon Restaurant Group, which last August opened a Bar Symon at the Pittsburgh International Airport, “is now scouting the region for what may eventually be four to six B Spot locations in the Pittsburgh area,” the newspaper reports.“We had always planned on coming to Pittsburgh. We've grown in the greater Cleveland area to a degree we're really comfortable with,” Doug Petkovic, a business partner in Symon Restaurant Group, tells the newspaper. “As much as these towns dislike each other for football, they're very similar cities. We just like the Pittsburgh market. We think we understand it.”Mr. Petkovic “hopes to have the company's first lease signed for B Spot in the next few months and debut the popular Cleveland restaurant here a few months after that,” according to the story.A real estate executive involved in the site search says B-Spot is seeking Pittsburgh locations of between 2,200 and 3,200 square feet.

Measured tapering

The Wall Street Journalreports that “a consensus has emerged” that the Federal Reserve will reduce the pace of its unconventional $85 billion-a-month bond-buying program, a drawdown that the central bank refers to as “tapering.”

Minutes from the Fed's latest policy meeting in March “showed a robust internal debate about exactly when the Fed should begin to gradually reduce the amounts of its monthly purchases of Treasury debt and mortgage-backed securities,” the newspaper says.It then provides a roundup of what Fed officials — including Cleveland Fed president Sandra Pianalto — have said on the subject since March 20.Here's how The Journal describes Ms. Pianalto's views on the subject:Raising concerns about the unprecedented size of the Fed's more than $3 trillion balance sheet, Ms. Pianalto suggested in a speech April 8 that the Fed might want to start tapering to avoid letting the balance sheet balloon even larger, which could trigger its own “uncertainties and risks.”“Given our limited experience with our asset purchase programs, slowing the pace of purchases could help minimize the potential risks associated with our large and growing balance sheet. Even continuing asset purchases at a reduced pace, and limiting the size of the overall program, would enable the Federal Reserve to continue adding accommodation and providing meaningful support to economic growth and job creation,” she said.

Wild west

Meaningful gun legislation is hard to achieve, as underscored by this New York Times story — with a connection to Canton — about online gun sales, and in particular a site called Armslist.com.The story begins by highlighting three classified ads posted by Omar Roman-Martinez of Colorado Springs, Colo., who has a pair of felony convictions for burglary and another for motor vehicle theft, as well as a misdemeanor domestic violence conviction — all of which bar him from owning guns. In an interview, Roman-Martinez tells The Times he ultimately decided not to buy a weapon, and he insists a 9-millimeter handgun he posted for sale on Armslist.com belonged to someone else.

But the mere fact that Mr. Roman-Martinez was seeking to buy and sell guns on Armslist “underscores why extending background checks to the growing world of online sales has become a centerpiece of new gun legislation being taken up in the Senate this week,” The Times says. “With no requirements for background checks on most private transactions … Armslist and similar sites function as unregulated bazaars, where the essential anonymity of the Internet allows unlicensed sellers to advertise scores of weapons and people legally barred from gun ownership to buy them.”Under current law, the newspaper notes, people who “engage in the business” of selling firearms need to obtain a license and conduct background checks on customers. While the definition of engaging in business is vague, The Times says it found that more than two dozen people had posted more than 20 different guns for sale in a several-month span.Among them was Joshua Lovejoy, 32, who since November has advertised more than 100 guns on Armslist, mostly in Canton, ranging from AR-15 assault rifles to Glock 19 semiautomatic pistols.Mr. Lovejoy once listed more than 20 guns in a single ad, the newspaper reports. He tells The Times, however, that he sold “only a few.”

He's the boss

The timing might not have been great on this latest casting announcement for the movie “Draft Day,” in which Kevin Costner will star as GM of the Cleveland Browns.Joining the cast of the Ivan Reitman-directed movie is Frank Langella, who will play Harvey Molina, the fictional owner of the football team. Mr. Langella has appeared in two films directed by Mr. Reitman, “Dave” and “Junior.”Maybe events of the past few days involving the Browns' real-life owner will give Mr. Langella some inspired comic possibilities in the role.You also can follow me on Twitter for more news about business and Northeast Ohio.